Former Black Stars skipper, Stephen Appiah has reiterated that Ghana played better than Italy in their 2006 World Cup in Germany.

Ghana made their debut in the world prestigious tournament for the first time in the history of the country when they took on Italy.

However, the four-time African champions were handed 2:0 defeat by the Italians who were eventually crowned champions.

Despite the loss, Appiah believes Ghana were the better side on the pitch.

"I knew most of the Italian players because I was then playing in Italy," he told GTV Sports Plus.

"In the tunnel, some of them came to me and said they will beat us and I also told them we are ready for the game.

"They won the game but we played better than them. Some of my playing mates in Italy came to me after the game and told me that and the world witnessed.

"Clearly, they had a game plan as we also had but were the better side," he added.